@roberto_photo’s journey to becoming a #CanonExplorerOfLight: “To become a great photographer, or anything really, you must put in the hours. It’s a simple formula, the more time you spend practicing something deliberately and correctly, the better at that ‘something’ you will be. There is no substitute for deliberate practice, not even talent.
At the very beginning of my career, I found some success in the wedding industry, so I focused my efforts on wedding photography. At least with weddings, the money was consistent. Soon, I began tackling my struggles with posing, lighting, composition, and speed. I would very slowly and meticulously practice, experiment, and explore every possible aspect of these four photographic elements. During my practice sessions, the world would disappear. I thought of nothing else but the task at hand. The more I mastered my flashes, posing, and creative composition, the more confident I became.
I took this photo in Sarasota, Florida, during a hurricane. The rain was coming down so hard that my assistant thought I was utterly crazy thinking about taking the couple out into a heavy downpour to take a photo. Towards the end of the reception, I visualized it in my mind and approached the couple with the idea. At first, the bride quickly said, ‘no way,’ but after some convincing from her husband, they decided to trust my vision and go for it!
The old saying ‘The pressure is ON!’ felt like a gross understatement. The pressure got to me, and I made a couple of significant mistakes that rendered the photo useless on our first try. But I shook it off, gathered my thoughts, trusted my skills & pleaded with the couple for one more chance. Reluctantly, they agreed. The couple went back out into the heavy rain, and this is the magical photograph that resulted from a challenging situation.
Two years later, my biggest dream in the photo industry came true, and Canon invited me to join the Canon Explorer of Light program. I felt more tears came out of my eyes than rain came down that night the photo was taken. Being a Canon Explorer of Light has been the honor of my photography career.”
📸 #Canon 5D Mark III
Lens: EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM
Ciao, Nihon.